Electric Blackout
by Pajaros en la cabeza
Summary: The Electric Mayhem suffers some accidents and troubles that put the group in danger, but who is behind them?
1. Shadow

_**THE MUPPET SHOW **_**BELONGS TO DISNEY (AND JIM HENSON COMPANY)  
**

* * *

_Look at them...  
They think they are so cool...So...Important...They disgust me...  
But they will see...  
They will regret having kicked me out of the band...  
ALL of them..._


	2. In the spotlight

_Knock, knock.  
_Antonio Banderas, who was reading a magazine in his dressing room, raised his eyes towards the door.  
"Come in", he said.  
Scooter popped in immediately.  
"Fifteen seconds to curtain, Mr. Banderas. Are you ready?"  
"Yeah, thank you, Scooter", Antonio answered, leaving the magazine in a little table.  
"Don't forget your cape and your sword, haha", Scooter said before he left as quick as he came.  
"Euh...Yes..."

A spotlight focused on the O in "Muppet Show", where Kermit appeared.  
"It's the Muppet Show with our very special guest Mr. Antonio Banderas! YAAAAAAAAAY!"  
The Muppet Show cartel raised up with the first chords of the main theme, giving way to the actors.

_It's time to play the music  
It's time to light the lights  
It's time to meet the Muppets at the Muppet Show tonight_

"Did you bring the tomatoes?", Statler asked his partner Waldorf, both sitting in their box.  
"Of course! At least they will give some flavour to the show!", smiled Waldorf, shaking a sack full of those.  
"Hahaha!"

_It's time to get things started  
On the most sensational  
Inspirational  
Celebrational  
Muppetational_

This is what we call the Muppet Show! 

Gonzo played his trumpet to start the show...And a great flame came off the bell of the instrument.  
"Thank you! Thank you!", Kermit presented in the middle of the stage. "Welcome to the Muppet Show! Tonight we have a great show for your entertainment with an exceptional guest: the Spanish actor Antonio Banderas!"  
Applause.  
"Well, to start with a night of laughter and fun, I'd like to present a group of dancers that come from the North Pole! They are the seals!"  
Another applause and the curtain raised. Kermit ran to backstage.  
"...I really hope they didn't noticed the penguins...", Kermit murmured.  
"No problem, chief, they are safe", Scooter reassured him.  
"Oh, great..."  
The frog supervised the next participants while a group of girls was surrounding the guest star.  
"Oooh, Antonio...Can I call you Antonio?", Ms. Piggy asked.  
"Yes, yes, of course", Antonio smiled.  
"I loved your role in _The mask of Zorro_. You were so...Handome!"  
"Fer sure", Janice sighed.  
"Euh...Yeah...You know, I also acted in other movies like _Evita, The skin I live in, Spy Kids, Interview with the vampire_ and dubbed the Puss in Boots in the _Shrek _saga", Antonio tried to explain.  
"Yeah, yeah. Could you sign moi some autographs, pleaaaaaaaase?", Piggy asked latching on to him.  
"Can I take you a photo?", Wanda asked.  
"Cococoooooh~", Camilla said, saking his feathers.  
Floyd frowned. He was holding Animal's chain, both sitting in some wooden boxes near them.  
"Man, look at that guy", grumbled to Animal. "All the girls are crazy about him just because he is a Hollywood actor"  
"Aaaaah, you are just jealous of our Mediterranean sex appeal", Pepe smiled when he walked near him.  
"I'm not jealous!", Floyd replied. "I...Well...Maybe a bit..."  
"Jealous! Jealous! Hahahaha! Jealous!", Animal sang.  
"Yeah, yeah, stop that, Animal! Sit!"  
Animal obeyed and sat on the floor.  
"That's right. We gotta get ready to play with Banderas. Janice, my love! Your guitar!"  
"What guit...?", Janice murmured. She was too busy asking the actor to sign her in her shirt. "Oh, yeah, the act! I'm rully sorry, Antonio, I have to leave! Thank you for the sign!"  
"See you in stage", Antonio said and gave her her marker back.  
"See ya...". Janice left with a silly smile that made Floyd hate Antonio even more than before.

_"Playing with a Hollywood star...That's so amazing...I bet you won't forget this night_...NEVER"__

A great applause indicated that the seals' act had just ended.  
"Chief, it's your turn!", Scooter indicated.  
Kermit run to the stage.  
"The seals, ladies and gentlemen! Now, our guest Antonio Banderas has a nice surprise for us. He will show us his singing skills performing a rock version of a popular song from his motherland, "Campanera", with our musicians "Doctor Teeth and the Electric Mayhem". Here they are!"  
He left the stage once more and he group began to play a lively tune. Antonio Banderas cleared his throat and started singing:

_¿Por qué has pintado en tus ojeras la flor de lirio real?  
¿Por qué te has puesto de seda, ay, campanera? ¿Por quién ser...?_

He couldn't continue.  
There was a bang and the public started shouting.  
The Electric Mayhem shouted.  
Antonio shouted.  
Kermit ran upstage with his froggy eyes opened with terror. "TEETH! TEETH! ARE YOU OKAY?"  
Doctor Teeth tried to answer but the pain and the fright blocked him.  
A spotlight had fallen on his head. Fortunately, it fell over his piano, which smashed with the impact. And Teeth's hand too.  
"An ambulance! Call an ambulance!", Antonio shouted.  
"What happened?", Fozzie asked.  
"It fell over the guys! I have seen it! They are so lucky: it could have killed them!", Rowlf assured.  
"At last, the show is giving us some excitement!", Waldorf laughed.  
The band was not amused at all. That piece of junk could have killed their friend and leader. The whole theatre was agitated and frightened but only Sam remained serene. He didn't like Doctor Teeth, but that was no reason to wish his death. It was a terrible accident which would have had terrible consecuences. He bent down to inspect the fallen spotlight.  
"AHA!", he cried.  
"What's up?", Floyd asked.  
"This was not an accident!", Sam announced.  
"Wha...? What did you say, Sam?", Kermit stammered.  
"Look at these wires, frog! Don't you see something strange? They are daily supervised so they could not just tear apart! No, my friend! They have been CUT OFF!"


	3. I wonder

"Provoked? You think that was provoked?"  
Kermit nodded. Doctor Teeth sighed and stared at the floor. His right hand was bandaged...But he was lucky to be alive.  
"Wow, man..."  
"We have no way to prove it...You know, there are no security cameras up there and we cannot trust in anybody's testimony...But Sam is right: the wires were cut off...", Kermit explained. "But don't worry, we have called the police. They will help us catch whoever did this to you".  
"Thank you, lad", Teeth smiled.  
"I have to go now. Antonio Banderas is still in the theatre and I promised to tell him all the news"  
"Give my regards to him"  
"I will. I leave you alone", Kermit said goodbye to the rest of the band.  
"Bye, Kermiiiit!", Animal said.  
Kermit closed the door and left the Electric Mayhem alone. They approached to the bed Teeth was lying in.  
"So...How are you feeling?", Zoot asked.  
"Not bad", Doctor Teeth replied. "My hand's burnin' and I won't be able to play in weeks, maybe months, but...Well...At least my head is intact"  
"Like yeah, that was so close...", Janice whispered.  
"Hey, guys, do you really think that someone threw us the spotlight?", Floyd asked.  
"I...I don't know but...It is possible...", Teeth admitted.  
"But who would be so nuts to try to kill us that way, in front of so many people?", Floyd asked.  
"You've got a point...", Zoot nodded.  
"Oh...Hey, guys, don't think this is a detective story. Maybe it was just an accident. Someone cut the wrong wires while working, the machine was too old or...I don't know. As our dear swamp brother said, there are no proves that it was an attack", Doctor Teeth stated.  
The others looked at each other not very convinced.  
"Not attack?", Animal asked.  
"Well...The only thing we can do is wait and see what the police says about this business", Floyd sighed.  
"Like, yeah...", Janice murmured.  
"I hope you get better soon. Playing at the show won't be fun without you", Zoot smiled to Doctor Teeth.  
"Naaah, you'll be allright without me", Teeth smiled back. "Rowlf will be playing the piano in my place till my hand gets its mobility back"  
But they all knew it wouldn't be the same. Teeth wouldn't be with them in a long time and they were afraid to play with those spotlights over their head.  
"Well...At least we aren't visiting Teeth at the cemetery...", Floyd repeated to himself.

Beauregard was sweeping the backstage indifferent to the events of that night. Yes, it was a terrible surprise, but no one had died and there was work to do. He couldn't clean the stage because some cops were investigating the accident so he decided to tidy up the corridor.  
A whistle approached to him. He turned around and saw Lips walking towards him.  
"Goodnight, Bauregard", he greeted.  
"Goodnight, Lips", Bauregard said. "Hey, did you see what happened to Doctor Teeth? Horryfing, isn't it?"  
"Yeah, it is...I have to call him to the hospital...By the way, Bo, you have the keys of the Mayhem's dressing room, right?", Lips asked taking a small step towards him.  
"Um...Yes, why?"  
"I think they have some reeds there and I need one for my trumpet. Could you let me the key for just one second to take it?"  
"Oh, of course", Bauregard said. He introduced his hand in his pocket and took out the key. "Bring it back when you are done, OK?"  
"Sure, thank you!"  
Lips took the key and walked towards the dressing room. Beauregard continued sweeping.  
"...Mmm...That's weird...I thought they had reeds in the concertists' storage room..."  
He shrugged his shoulders and resumed his work.


	4. The love letter

The day after, Janice walked into her dressing room after the rehersal for that night's show. Definitely, it was not the same without Doctor Teeth, but Rowlf did well. It wasn't the first time he played with the Electric Mayhem, so he had no problems at all. Their leader was resting at home, Zoot was taking a nap and Floyd was in the toilet with Animal.  
The lead guitar had to refresh herself after three hours playing and singing without a break. She fanned herself with a _Revolver _magazine she found on Teeth's piano and looked for a bottle of water.  
While she was driking like she was in a desert, she noticed a pink envelope stuck with cellophane in the door of her boyfriend's locker. She took it and noticed that there was a big heart drawn on it.  
"Uh?"  
She took the letter. What was that? Why did it have a heart?  
She was sure it wasn't hers.  
She couldn't contain herself and decided to read it since Floyd wasn't around.  
...Of course it wasn't hers.  
As soon as she began reading, her eyes were opening more, and more, and more.

_Dear Floyd.  
I am still thinking about you and your girlfriend. I understand that you don't want to hurt her but we can't continue like_ _this. I have to know that you love me. I don't want to be "the other girl". I don't want to lose you. You are the best thing that has happened to me.  
_ _  
Waiting for your answer_,  
_ Rebecca_  
What?  
"The other girl"?  
No...  
She couldn't believe it...  
"Hey, babe".  
Floyd came into the dressing room with a smile.  
"I left Animal eating in the cafeteria. I thought it would be nice to be alone you and I for a whil..."  
**¡SLAP!  
**Floyd put his hand on his cheek, which was turning red. Janice was looking at him with a really vicious face.  
"W-What was that about?!", Floyd asked.  
"WHO'S THAT REBECCA?", Janice yelled. "WHO IS SHE?"  
"What are you talking about? What Rebecca?"  
"Oooh, now you're acting the fool, uh?"  
"Seriously, Janice, I have no idea of what you're saying!"  
"Watch this! This is what I'm saying!", Janice threw the letter at him.  
"What's that?"  
"Stop saying that! At least, tell me why yer cheating on me! She is prettier than me?! Is she rich, funny and famous?! Do I know her?! Tell me! Tell me!"  
"Oh, that's it? Did you slap me because you think that I was dating another girl? That's ridiculous! You know that you are the only woman in my life! I told you many times! Why don't you trust me?"  
"How could I trust you? Yer a liar! You've been always a cynic, sarcastic liar! That's why I loved you! But I won't let you do this to me!".  
Janice was so furious that she opened the door with a bang and left the room without realizing that all the theatre was looking at her. Floyd was too.  
"I-ALREADY-SAID-THAT-I-AM-NOT-CHEATING ON YOU! How must I tell you?! You're being so neurotic and pig-headed!", he yelled at her from the doorframe.  
The _Pigs in space _cast turned around to him.  
"Curse you!", Janice replied.  
"Where are you going?"  
"Tell the guys to improvise, cuz I quit! I don't want to see you anymore!"  
"What? You quit? Oh, fine! Allright! Go! Go away!"  
Floyd was about to close the door when he saw that Scooter, Kermit, the pigs, the Swedish Chef, the chickens and even the guest star Danny de Vito were silent and looking at him.  
"What are you looking at?!", he shouted before he closed the door.

Janice rushed along the corridors. She wanted to go home. She wanted to cry. She wanted to break things and eat lots of ice cream. How could Floyd do such a disgusting thing to her?  
Suddenly, she stopped as she saw Bauregard dusting the pictures on the walls. He could have seen that girl called Rebecca.  
"Bauregard!", she called him.  
"Wha...? Oh, Janice! Hi! How are you?", he said.  
"Fine, like, listen...Have you seen a girl coming in our band's dressing room?", she asked anxiously.  
"Apart from you, no", Bauregard replied, nodding.  
"Okay...Thank you", Janice continued walking.  
"The only one that has entered in your room apart from you guys was Lips, when you were all at the hospital with Doctor Teeth", Bauregard remembered while dusting the nose of Gonzo's portrait. "He asked me to give him the key to pick up a reed for his trumpet"  
"...But...Trumpets don't need reeds..."  
"I don't know, that's what he told me"  
He began humming "Burning love" while Janice, confused and still angry, continued walking towards the exit.


	5. Bunsen's callygraphy analizer

Animal looked at Floyd with sad eyes.  
"Janice gone?", he asked.

Floyd nodded.  
"But...Man, why? That's...", Zoot muttered.  
"Hello, everybody!". Doctor Teeth came into the cafeteria with his recovered smile. "I was tired of being home doing nothing productive so I came to wish you good luck with this tonight performing. I could also practise to play with my left hand..."  
He stopped talking when he saw the faces of his mates.  
"Hey, what's the matter?"  
"Janice and Floyd just broke up", Zoot explained to him. "She doesn't want to play tonight"

"Really? Wow...Man, I...I thought you were happy!", Teeth looked at Floyd with surprise.

"We were! But this stupid letter ruined it all!", Floyd complained, shaking the pink letter in his hand.  
"What letter?"  
"Janice found it in our dressing room"  
"May I...?"  
Floyd gave it to Teeth and he started reading. Animal and Zoot read it by his side.  
"...Who's that Rebecca?", Doctor Teeth asked.  
"I don't know! That's the problem!", Floyd answered.  
"No Rebecca?", Animal asked with a confuse expression.  
"No! I don't know any girl called Rebecca! I tried to explain it to Janice, she didn't listen to me!"  
"Well...What can we do now?", Zoot asked.  
"...You could play "Take Five", since you don't need a guitar for that song", Doctor Teeth suggested. "In the meantime, I can talk to Janice and try to make her change her mind"  
"Thanks, Teeth, but this is something between us. I can't believe she got so angy...", Floyd sighed.  
The band heard a cough behind them. Bunsen and Beaker were observing them.  
"I am sorry to disturb you, but we couldn't help listening to your conversation", Bunsen said. "You have problems concerning a mysterious letter, am I wrong?"  
"Yeah, you're right. She claims to be my lover", Floyd explained.  
"Would you mind if I take a look?", Bunsen asked.  
Doctor Teeth gave him the letter and the two scientists read it carefully.  
"...Mee mee meeep", Beaker said.  
"I have to agree with you, Beakie. That's curious...", Bunsen nodded.  
"What?", Floyd asked.  
"I have to ask you something...Maybe a little confidential...Do you have...enemies?", Bunsen asked.  
"What? Of course of not! Why do you think that?", Floyd exclaimed.  
"No, no, it's just that...Well, it is quite a curious coincidence that you receive this letter from a nonexistent lover...The same week when your leader is almost killed in an accident, don't you think?"  
"Wait, wait, wait, are you telling me that you think that someone is trying to harm us?", Doctor Teeth asked with his eyes wide opened.  
"Mee mee", Beaker confirmed.  
"That's impossible!", Floyd said.  
"Well, I do think that it is possible" Bunsen putting his hands in his pocket.  
"But...Who in earth would do...?", Floyd murmured.  
"If you don't mind...Maybe our latest invention can help you"  
"Mee mee moo"  
"Come to our laboratory"  
The Electric Mayhem looked at each other and decided to follow them. They didn't trust Bunsen's gadgets but they didn't have other option.  
And...He was maybe right.  
Beaker opened a drawer and looked for something among a bunch of papers and screws. Finally, he took out a magnifying glass with a little screen incorporated in its handle.  
"Thanks, Beaker", Bunsen said, taking it. "Gentlemen, this is our calligraphy analyzer. It is used as a regular magnifying glass, but it is equipped with a software that detects traces characteristic of a particular person's handwriting. This is only a prototype, but it contains the writing pattern of the whole Muppet Theatre, including all the present in this room. One try and it identifies with a 99% of reliability the writer. Maybe the one who wrote the letter that has broken you relationship with your girlfriend has something to do with the spotlight that almost killed Doctor Teeth".  
"...Yeah...Let's do it", Floyd nodded.  
"Beaker, if you don't mind", Bunsen asked Beaker, giving the instrument back to him.  
"Mee mee mee".  
Beaker left the letter on the table and examined it carefully with the analyzer. It began to emit some beeps and when Beaker stopped, the screen displayed a percentage.  
"Finished. We only have to wait a few seconds", Bunsen explained.  
The six muppets inclined to the invention. 40%. 56%. 64%. 78%. 82%. 99%.  
100%.  
A name appeared in the screen.  
A terribly familiar name.  
"...Lips?", Zoot whispered.  
"Lips wrote that letter?", Doctor Teeth exclaimed.  
"It seems so", Bunsen said. "99% of reliability".  
"Whyyy?", Animal asked.  
"I can't understand it! Why would Lips do such thing to Floyd and Janice?", Doctor Teeth asked.  
"We're gonna know! I have plenty of time since it is our turn to break his face!", Floyd grumbled.  
He got out the Muppet Labs running.


	6. The worst opening ever

"Hey, Janice, where are you going?", Trumpet Girl asked Janice when she saw her near the door.  
"I'm goin' home...I'm...a bit tired", Janice answered.  
"But you have to play, don't you?"  
"Nah...They will manage without me"  
"Oh, well...See you!" Trumpet Girl said. Janice was about to open the door when she added: "Hey, by the way, it's very cold out there, won't you freeze dressed like that?"  
Janice looked at herself. She only had her spaghetti strap covering her , damn, she forgot her coat in her dressing room!  
"Jeez, like, I almost forgot my coat! Thank you, Dolores, sweetie!", Janice said before she turned around and ran back to the room.  
"No problem", Trumpet Girl smiled.  
Janice didn't want to see Floyd nor her other friends to avoid an uncomfortable moment, but she didn't want to catch a cold out there. And she had heard Piggy complaining about a stolen scarf.  
The show was about to start. The audience was taking seats and the actors were preparing their numbers. She was determined not to join them. She didn't feel like it.  
She was crossing the backstage crowd when she saw Lips going up the orchesta pit. He had a screwdriver in his hand.  
"Yay, Lips!", she waved to him.  
"Oh, Janice", he smiled...with a surprised and a little forced expression.  
"How's life? Like, I haven't seen you in ages!"  
"Uh...Fine, fine, I'm fine. And you?"  
"Me too. How's everything in the orchesta?"  
"Good, yeah, you know, Nigel's a pain, but I got a lot of work and they pay well so...Well, I have to go. See ya!"  
"OK, byee!"  
Janice observed that he was in a rush, even though the show started in almost half an hour. And she noticed that he tried to hide the screwdriver in his hand.  
Oh, well.

"Let's see...Lights?", Kermit supervised.  
"Ready", Scooter pointed.  
"Set?"  
"Ready"  
"Cast?"  
"Um...Janice and Floyd are missing"  
"What? But the show is about to start"  
Scooter leaned out of the curtain.  
"Wait, there's Floyd!"  
"And Janice? Well, it doesn't matter, tell someone to replace her! Is Mr. de Vito ready?"  
"Yes, he is"  
"Ah, thanks goodness. Let's go for it!"  
"In three, two, one..."  
Kermit popped out from the O in _Muppet Show_.  
"It's the Muppet Show with our very special guest Mr. Danny de Vito! YAAAAAAAAAY!"  
"I'm telling you", Floyd whispered to Animal while they were playing the firsts notes of the opening theme. "If I put my hands on that rat, I will kill him!"  
"Kill him! Kill him!", Animal repeated.  
"SSSSSSSSHHHH! Please!", Nigel glared at them.  
Floyd shut his mouth but couldn't help staring at Lips, who was playing his trumpet two feet far from him, with a look that could have ripped his head off. Doctor Teeth noticed it from the backstage. "_Please, Floyd, hold back, buddy!_", he thought. Janice didn't notice it in the other side of the stage, watching the opening next to Scooter.  
Something got that revenge fever off of Floyd's mind for a moment. He felt something strange in his base guitar. But the most obvious evidence that there was something wrong came from Animal's drums. The cyms were moving too much with each beat they received.  
Animal also noticed that when the pedal with which he marked the rythm came out of its place. He looked at Floyd with a confused glance and Floyd looked at Zoot. He was ready to play his part of the scores at Rowlf's sign.  
When it was his turn, the saxophone produced a horrible noise that silenced the orchesta.  
"Don't stop the music, don't stop the music, that was just out of tune!", Nigel indicated in a mutter.  
But that wasn't out of tune. Zoot continued playing as if nothing had happened, but the saxophone still sounded like an elephant.  
"Huh? What the...?", he murmured, checking it.  
The public and the actors were looking at him. They couldn't believe that Zoot played so badly.  
"What's this?!", Zoot exclaimed. The screws of his saxophone were almost out of its place. He could remove them just shaking the instrument.  
"Did you revise it?", Nigel asked.  
"Of course I did! I played it and cleaned it this afternoon!", Zoot defended.  
"Oh, dear...", Kermit moaned, covering his face with his hand.  
"Yeah! Zoot played and Animal beat drums!", Animal joined his friend.  
He beat the toms and suddenly, the drum set collapsed. The wild muppet jumped.  
"Drums, drums!", the exclaimed sadly, looking at fallen and scattered parts of his loved instrument.  
"The screws! They have removed the screws of our instruments!", Floyd said, picking up a little screw from the floor.  
Janice heard that and saw it clear. She had seen Lips walking out the orchesta pit with a screwdriver in his hands. He was in a rush. And Bauregard said that he wanted to come into their dressing room the night when the spotlight fell over Doctor Teeth's head.  
"...Like...No...", she muttered.  
"But you already know it, right, Lips?", Floyd turned to Lips.  
"...What?", Lips whispered.  
"Why did you do this? Are you jelous of us? Do you like Janice? Do you hate us for something in concrete? TELL ME!"  
"Floyd, for God's sake, I don't have any idea of what's happening here!"  
"Oh, really? Ha! You wrote that letter, you filthy liar"  
"What letter?"  
Animal approached to him growling like a beast.  
"Wh-What's happening here?", Kermit asked. "Call Security!"  
"We don't have Security!", Fozzie reminded him.  
"Please, guys, believe me!", Lips begged, walking backwards. "I don't know what are you talking about!"  
"Let me give you a reminder...Get him, Animal!", Floyd ordered.  
Animal roared and rushed towards Lips. He screamed and ran to backstage. The rest of the band ran after them.  
"This is the best thing I have seen in ages!", Waldorf commented, standing in his box.  
"We must bring a lion to chase the actors next week!", laughed Statler.  
"Oh, my, oh, my, oh, my! I can't look at this!", Kermit mumbled.

The chase didn't last long. When the Electric Mayhem reached the props section, Animal was pounding on Lips, who was shouting.  
"Stop, stop, Animal! Good job, man!", Floyd separated him from Lips pulling his chain.  
Animal moved and let Lips breeze. Floyd grabbed him from his shirt.  
"You and I have to talk, don't ya think?!"  
"Why, Lips? Why did you do that?", Janice asked him.  
"Do you refer to the instruments or the letter thing?", Lips asked, standing with difficulty. "I swear to you that I have nothing to do with that stuff, please, believe me!"  
"And why did you write that letter?", Zoot asked.  
"I didn't write it!"  
"But I saw you with a screwdriver in the pit and Bauregard told me that you came into our dressing room last night!", Janice said.  
"Oh, yeah, I can explain that", Lips said. He took breath and looked at the floor. "I...was preparing a surprise for you..."


	7. Surprise

"A...surprise...for us?", Floyd repeated.  
Lips nodded.  
"Don't you remember? Tomorrow's the 37th anniversary of the Electric Mayhem's debut!"  
The group members looked at each other. They really had passed 37 years since that "Sex and Violence" pilot? They had forgotten it.  
"It is not a pretty number but I thought it was special because of the rebirth of the Muppets and that stuff...", Lips explained. "We are all together once again, like in the olden years and...Well, I decided to prepare a little gift for you."  
He crossed the room and indicated his friends to follow him. They obeyed looking at each other wondering if it was a trick or something like that.  
Lips stopped in front of a cardboard box situated near the corridor, almost hidden by a clothes stand and opened it.  
"I suppose I have to give you your presents in advance", he sighed.  
When he showed them the content, the Electric Mayhem felt a mix of surprise, joy and shame for having treated Lips like that. He had prepared a blue cover for Zoot's sax, a set of plectrums with the Electric Mayhem's logo for Floyd, a pair of red, bright drumsticks for Animal, a set of stickers for Janice's guitar which included the band's logo, some thunders and her name and a colorful metronome for Doctor Teeth. They all had the name of their owners and, in a smaller size, "Doctor Teeth and the Electric Mayhem".  
"Like...Wow, Lips...This...This is amazing!", Janice said.  
"Did you do all this for us?", Zoot asked.  
"Yeah...", Lips smiled.  
"You didn't have to buy all this, but I must thank you with all my heart. They are so cool!", Doctor Teeth smiled, hugging Lips.  
"Hehe, no problem. I owed you", Lips said.  
"But I still can't understand...Why were you in the orchesta pit with a screwdriver?", Janice asked him.  
"Oh, I found it", Lips answered shrugging his shoulders. "I went there before the show started to prepare my trumpet and talk to Nigel about the scores of tomorrow's number with Lady Gaga, and I found it in my chair. I thought it was Bauregard's so I went to give it him back. Sorry for that, Janice: when I bumped into you I had a lot of things to do"  
"Rully?"  
"So...You found it in your chair?", Teeth asked.  
"Yeah"  
"And why did you slip in our dressing room?", Floyd asked.  
"Oh, Bauregard told you, didn't he?", Lips recognized. "Well, I had to look what type of plectrum you use. I would have asked you myself but then it happened that spotlight accident and I had to order it to have it in time. Sorry, I know that I shouldn't have entered like that"  
"You're forgiven but...Why did you write this letter to me? Man, me and Janice have split up for your fault!"  
"I didn't draw any letter! And I wouldn't do that to you!"  
"And how do you explain that Bunsen's found a 99% coincidence with your writing?"  
He gave the letter to Lips and he read it.  
"...That's...That's my writing!", Lips exclaimed.  
"Are you sure you didn't...?", Zoot asked.  
"No! I swear I didn't write this but...Why it has my writing?"  
"You know, guys...This is getting dark", Doctor Teeth whispered. "First, someone cuts the wires of the spotlight right above us. Next, some individual left a compromising letter for Floyd that destroys his relationship with our dearest lead guitar and provokes her leaving...Written with a suspicious ressemblence like Lips' handwriting. And this night the instruments are dismantled, giving a disastrous opening to the show and the first suspect is our trumpeter...I don't know what you think about this but...It seems to me that somebody is really trying to destroy the group!"  
"Man...", Zoot whispered, taking his hat off to scratch his bald patch.  
"But who would do that to us?", Lips asked.  
"I wished I knew it...", Doctor Teeeth said.  
Janice approached to Floyd.  
"Ummm...Floyd?"  
Floyd turned to her.  
"I...I am rully sorry about...You know...I-I was so jealous...I thought that..."  
"Hush, dear", Floyd smiled. "I understand why you did that...I am sorry to...Have yelled at you and called you..."  
"Let's say...Nothing happened, huh?"  
"Absolutely nothing"  
The restored couple hugged and celebrated the reconciliation with a tender kiss.  
"Awwwww", Animal sighed.  
But all at once, his sigh became a howl. His friends jumped.  
"What's up, Animal?", Floyd asked, moving away from Janice.  
Animal couldn't answer. He tottered for some seconds before he fell to the ground like a cut tree.  
There was a dart stuck in his hairy nape.  
"W-What? Animal! Animal!", Floyd tried to bring his friend round.  
"What's happened?", Zoot asked.  
"Animal!", Teeth joined Floyd.  
"_Oh, don't worry, he's not dead"  
_A shadow emerged from the corridor, closing the door behind her. She had a little gun in her hand.  
She was a purple muppet with curly, blond hair who was wearing the orchesta outfit.  
The Electric Mayhem members looked at her astonished.  
"...Trumpet Girl?...", Doctor Teeth muttered.


	8. The forgotten musician

"Oh...You don't even remember my name...", Trumpet Girl muttered.  
"What...are you doing here? What have you done to Animal?", Floyd asked, standing.  
"He'll be fine. I just put him to sleep so we could talk calmly. We don't need your pet right now, do we?"  
"Hey, don't talk about him that...!"  
"Easy, easy, man!", Doctor Teeth looked at Trumpet Girl. "Dolores, why did you do that?"  
"Oh, hi, Teeth. I didn't know you were here. I expected you to be resting at home...At the hospital...Or better at the morgue!"  
"You...You cut the spotlight...", Janice whispered.  
"I see that the blonde stereotype is false for you...", Trumpet Girl smiled ironically. "Well, we are alone, so I think I can tell you. Yes, I cut the wires while you were acting with Banderas. It wasn't complicated: tools are spread everywhere, everyone's watching the show and, as part of the crew, I have access to the control booth, you know?"  
"...Why...How could you...?"  
Trumpet Girl ignored her and looked at Lips.  
"It is a pity that you had time to clarify the issue...I hoped that Animal would rip your throat before you could say anything", she said.  
"So you tried to blame me?", Lips exclaimed.  
"Oooh, you're getting it. I knew that the letter was a bomb, but before writing it I thought that it would be funny if I imitated your handwriting. It exonerated me in the case that someone investigates the author. I am glad that the good Doctor Honeydew confirmed that it was yours. But you were still performing in the show so I had to improvise..._No instruments, no band_, I thought. So I took a screwdriver from the lumber room and put my hands on it. When I finished, I remembered that the whole band was very, very angry with you, so...I'm really sorry, Lips, it is nothing personal...Oh, wait...It is...**I hate you**"  
"Why? Why do you hate me? What have I done to you?", Lips asked.  
Trumpet Girl took breath.  
"_Because you are the sixth member..._", she said in a lower voice.  
The Electric Mayhem could not believe what they were listening.  
"I always dreamed to be like you guys...I liked the orchesta, but...You were so free, so cool...Everyone loved you...You even had your own numbers...I loved playing with you when the Show started...I...I tried it hard to be like you and become a member of the Electric Mayhem...I thought we were friends and someday...Maybe...I would be part of your group...But do you remember what you said when I asked you to join?_"  
_Doctor Teeth looked at the floor.  
"Say it, Teeth", Trumpet Girl said.  
Teeth swallowed hard.  
"Say it", Trumpet Girl repeated harder.  
"_We don't need a trumpeter at the moment_...", he whispered.  
"Exactly", Trumpet Girl nodded. "You didn't need me. No one needed me. I was just a background muppet. You made it very clear. Since then, you only counted on me for a few songs and that's it. You forgot me, like the others. You had great appearances in the movies and the show, while I just got one single line in the whole series...One! I could cope with that. I continued working as if nothing happened, that's life! But then...You appeared...", she gave a deadly glare to Lips.  
Lips felt shivers in his back. How could a little girl be so...scary?  
"They said that you were the sixth member of the Electric Mayhem...A trumpeter...They all knew that there was another trumpeter before...And...Nigel...Nigel said that I should play the trombone instead...You...You made me renounce to the instrument I loved...It wasn't fair...IT WAS NOT FAIR! YOU STOLE MY DREAM! THAT'S WHY I DID IT, OKAY? **I-HATE-YOU-ALL**!  
"Dolores...Please, calm down...You didn't have to do all this. We...We could have talked about it", Doctor Teeth tried to calm the purple muppet.  
"SHUT UP!", Trumpet Girl shouted. "You will pay for that...All of you...Starting with your friend..."  
She looked at Animal, who was still lying in the floor, with an evil smile.  
"I have all this planned", she continued as she was explaining how her birthday party would be. "All the theatre has seen your instruments tearing apart. They all know that Lips has been doing horrible things to you and you wanted to make him pay...They saw Animal chasing him...He had to defend himself, so...", she charged her gun with another dart. "He saw this gun in one box and fired...But he accidentaly injected him...An overdose..."  
"DON'T YOU DARE TO TOUCH MY BROTHER, YOU LITTLE WITCH!", Floyd sprang on her.  
Trumpet Girl turned to him pressing the trigger.  
"FLOYD!", Zoot screamed.


	9. Fight in backstage

The dart stuck in Floyd's chest but he continued running towards Trumpet Girl. He grabbed the young lady by the lapels of her orchesta suit and lifted her a hand.  
"Don't...you...dare...", he grumbled.  
"And what are you gonna do?", Trumpet Girl asked without losing her composture. "I have injected you a potent sedative indicated to big animals. You will be lucky if you're still alive"  
Floyd was losing his balance but he managed to punch her cheek perfectly. Trumpet Girl fell to the floor.  
"Floyd! Floyd!", Janice exclaimed, holding him.  
Trumpet Girl touched the area where he had hit her, but showed no other signs of pain.  
"I know you well...You think you are so brave, so witty, but you are nothing but a cocky git which is nothing without his friends"  
Floyd wanted to repeat the hit, but he was beginning to have a blur vision. He felt his strength deserting him.  
"You...I'm gonna...", he tried to say.  
"Hush, Sergeant Pepper", Trumpet Girl. "Now in a minute you will fall asleep and you won't have to worry about your friends"  
Zoot started walking backwards towards the door they came from. Slowly. He could have a posibility to warn Kermit and the others...Trumpet Girl was only paying attention to Floyd...Maybe...  
"Dolores, you will regret this!", Doctor Teeth said. "Listen to me. OK? Listen. We are sorry. We are so sorry that you felt abandoned and replaced. We never meant that. But...But all this shouldn't have happened. I mean...What are you going to get killing Animal? What's the sense of all this drama? They will fire you! You will go to jail! What would you win?"  
Trumpet Girl smiled.  
"Oh, I know I can consider myself fired. But, know what? I don't care. All I want is make you suffer. I want you to suffer so much that you won't be able to play anymore!"  
She remained silent, watching Floyd closing his eyes.  
"Floyd! Floyd! Wake up! Please, wake up! You can't...No...", Janice shook him.  
"Good night, redhead", Trumpet Girl smiled. "Well, where was I? Oh, yeah, I was preparing this fateful accident..."  
She took a new dart but before she charged the weapon with it, she looked at Lips.  
"Sorry, Lips. You've been always nice to me. And I appreciate it. But you stole my place. When I get rid of this animal, I will have time to think what shall I do to you"  
Zoot turned slowly to the door and put his hand on the handle.  
"...But first..."  
Zoot felt like his heart stopped beating. He looked behind and saw Trumpet Girl right next to him.  
"Where are you going, Zoot? You won't miss the fun, will you?"  
Zoot tried to run, but Trumpet Girl hit him in the head with the butt of the gun and the blue muppet fell to the floor. He opened the door in the fall.  
"KERM-", he tried to shout, but Trumpet Girl covered his mouth with her hand.  
No one saw them. They were all watching the show.  
"For this number, I will cross this tank full of alligators in a tightrope while reciting "Jabberwocky" by Lewis Carroll!", Gonzo explained to the audience.  
They were very excited. Even Statler and Waldorf were looking at him expectating that he would fall.  
Only Robin heard the door open and saw a figure being dragged to backstage.  
"C'mon, guys!", Doctor Teeth exclaimed.  
At this signal, Janice, Lips and him pounced on her.  
"ARGH! RELEASE ME! LET ME GOOOO!", Trumpet Girl shouted.  
"Sorry, chick, but you leave us no other option", Lips mumbled, holding her wrists firmly.  
"Aaargh!"  
"Zoot, Zoot! Are you okay?", Janice asked Zoot, crouching down by his side.  
"Ugh...", Zoot complained. His bald was turning red because of the blow.  
"We gotta tell Kermit!", Janice said.  
"Go to seek him, we will take care of the little psycho!", Doctor Teeth told her.  
"Oh, no, you're not going anywhere!", Trumpet Girl yelled.  
She squeezed his broken hand with all her might. Teeth released her giving a scream of pain. Then, she kicked Lips' stomach.  
Now free, she ran after Janice but a hairy hand grabbed her by the hair and threw her to the floor.  
"W-What...? Animal?", Lips exclaimed.  
Yes, Animal was awake! But when? How?  
"A-Animal! Like, we thought you were...", Janice smiled.  
"Grrr, it seems that those sedants weren't enough for you...", Trumpet Girl grumbled.  
Animal looked at Janice, whose makeup was smudging because of the heat. He turned to Doctor Teeth, who felt that his hand hurt a thousand times more than before. Lips, next to him, was confused and scared. Zoot didn't return his gaze, for he was feeling really dizzy. And Floyd was lying on the floor.  
"BAD WOMAN! KILL!", he yelled rushing towars her.  
"Stop, you filthy creature! One more step and I will kill you!", Trumpet Girl warned aiming him with her gun.  
Animal didn't listen. He approached to her growling and showing his fangs.  
"You know?", Trumpet Girl smiled with her eyes wide open. "I won...No matter what you do...If I kill you, the band will be broken. If you kill me, you will be all murderers. No one will know what happened here. No one will believe you. You don't have proves against me. Hahaha! You won't play in this show NEVER AGAIN!"  
Doctor Teeth, Janice, Lips and not even Animal were looking at her when she said that. They were looking behind her.  
She turned around.  
The whole muppet cast was there.  
"Wow, did she...do all that?", Rowlf muttered.  
"I can't believe it!", the guest star Danny de Vito exclaimed.  
"Varför gjorde du det?", the Swedish Chef asked.  
Robin took a step to her.  
"You know? Sometimes being unnoticed is a practical thing"  
Trumpet Girl opened her mouth but no words came from there.  
"Hey, we need an ambulance here!", Bean Bunny exclaimed when he saw the Electric Mayhem.  
"Oh, my goodness!", Wanda gasped.  
"That is unacceptable!", Sam shouted.  
"Dolores...What...What's all this? What have you done?", Kermit asked Trumpet Girl.  
Trumpet Girl babbled before she could say anything comprehensible.  
"...I...I...I..."  
"Call the police immediately! This is an escandal!", Sam yelled.  
"Are you okay, guys?", Kermit asked the Electric Mayhem, approaching to them.  
"More or less", Lips answered.  
"What happened here?", Link asked them, looking at the mess.  
"Uh...It's a very long story, man...", Doctor Teeth said.  
Animal turned to Floyd and shook him gently.  
"...Floyd dead?", he asked in a low voice.  
"Don't worry, pal...He...is just...asleep", Zoot calmed him. He was making a huge effort to keep awake.


	10. Forgive me

Lips walked down the street all alone.  
He put his mobile phone in his pocket with a sigh. He had called the hospital to know how his friends were. Floyd had just woke up and could speak a little to him. He told him that Zoot wouldn't have sequels from that bump in the head apart from a bandage that his hat would disguise, Doctor Teeth had to repose his hand a little more time, and Janice and Animal were perfectly. He was really happy for that.  
Janice told him about Trumpet Girl. Kermit had visited them to tell them the news. She was arrested a few minutes after they arrived to the hospital.  
Kermit didn't know what to do with her. He felt very responsible for what happened...He knew she wasn't right. Apart from the deception caused by the Electric Mayhem, her life got a little difficult since the show cancelled. She had to return home and didn't adapt to her new jobs. Her relationship with her mother got so worse that she once told Kermit that she hated her. When the Muppets returned, the stress and the pression also did...He did nothing but blame himself for what happened next.  
"I knew she was going to therapy...And I still accepted that she worked here with you...", he said.  
Trumpet Girl, he explained, was going to have a long vacation until her nerves calmed down. He didn't think of firing her because he was sure that she didn't mean to kill them, he thought that that was one of those things that one does when he is stressed and he isn't proud of later. But the Electric Mayhem were within their rights to denounce her after what she did to them. Doctor Teeth said that they would discuss about it.  
Lips didn't want to. He felt bad.  
She was somehow right...Why did they accept him and left Dolores out, though she was there before and was as talented as him? Of course it wasn't fair.  
"Why did they accept me? Because I'm a man? Because I'm older? Because I'm cooler? I don't know...I have to ask them...They will think that I'm crazy but I have to know...I don't want her to hate me..."  
He stopped and sat in a bench near him. He took his trumpet, played some notes and left the cover on the ground. Then, he started playing "Forgive me" by Donna Summer.  
He had his eyes closed so he couldn't see people throwing coins to his cover and the whole street looking at him. Some of them took him a photo with their mobile phones because they had never seen a performer like that or they recognized him from the Muppets. Others were annoyed with that noisy instrument.  
He didn't care, anyways. He achieved his purpose.  
Trumpet Girl leant out of the window of Saint Mary's Psychiatric Hospital.  
He knew that was her favourite song, but he didn't know if that would be enough to make her forget her grudge against him.  
She would throw him something. Or maybe she would close the window. He only hoped that that wouldn't have a negative impact in her nerves.  
He didn't want to look at her window directly. He remained with his eyes closed.  
He wanted to say it...  
"_Yes, Dolores, I know how you feel. I also loved being with the Electric Mayhem but we took different paths when the show cancelled. I was just an honorary member. We all knew it. We are friends...They have been the best friends I've ever had...But they are meant to be quintet. They are like a family. And you and I can't do nothing about it. I also hate Nigel bossing me around and miss the times when I acted with them, but...Well...I still have my trumpet, my soul...I am so sorry that they made you renounce to it...I didn't want it...Maybe one day we will do a duet...Be friends like nothing of this had happened...And then I could tell you that we may be expendible, but we can still be heard...I always heard you above all the instruments..._"  
He finished the song and heard some applauses around him. He smiled to his unexpected audience and looked at the window.  
Trumpet Girl was still looking at him.  
He couldn't see her expression at that distance.  
He only hoped that she understood that he didn't want to provoke her.  
It was just that...Though she hated him...He didn't hate her.

* * *

**"So this is the end, right?"**  
**"I hope so! I wouldn't bear another chapter!"**  
**"Hohoho!"**


End file.
